6142.103

Instruction

Trauma Informed Schools

The Board of Education (Board) believes that when students are healthy, safe, supported, engaged and challenged, they are then able to learn to the best of their ability. Becoming “trauma informed” is one key aspect of creating such a learning environment.

Definitions

A trauma informed school is one in which all students and staff feel safe, welcomed and supported and where the impact of trauma on teaching and learning is addressed at the center of the educational mission. Trauma-informed schools create school policies, practices and cultures that are sensitive to the needs of traumatized individuals and ensure that all individuals (students, families and staff) meet their maximized potential.

Trauma is the response to an event, series of events, or set of circumstances that is experienced by an individual as physically or emotionally harmful or life threatening and that has lasting adverse effects on the individual’s functioning and mental, physical, social, emotional, or spiritual well-being. Trauma can result from a single event (single-episode or acute trauma) or it can result from multiple traumatic events over time (complex trauma). There are a wide range of experiences that can result in trauma.

OR

Trauma is an actual or perceived danger, which undermines a child’s physical or emotional safety, or poses a threat to the safety of the child’s parents or care givers, overwhelming their coping ability and impacting their functioning and development. Traumatic experiences, whether real or perceived, lead children to feel significant levels of helplessness, powerlessness and intense fear.

Trauma-sensitive schools acknowledge the prevalence of traumatic occurrence in students’ lives and create a flexible framework that provides universal supports, is sensitive to unique needs of students, and is mindful of avoiding re-traumatization.

A trauma informed approach to education is intended to improve attendance, graduation rates and reduce incidents of behaviors that can inhibit learning.

The District recognizes that the developmental impact of childhood and historical trauma increases student risk for, but not limited to, academic failure, severe attendance problems, severe school behavior concerns and possible chronic health concerns, which negatively impacts student engagement and learning.

The District will strive to create physically and emotionally safe and culturally responsive environments for all staff, students and families through effective professional staff development in school procedures and school practices and instruction in the following areas:

1.  Understanding the widespread impact of trauma and the role schools play in promoting resiliency;

2.  Recognizing the signs and symptoms of trauma in students, families and staff; and

3.  Integrating knowledge about trauma and social emotional learning in children.

Administrators must consider a student’s past and their possible experiences with traumatic events when building relationships, encouraging positive behavior and gathering resources to assist students’ success.

Additional language to consider:

The District will develop methods to create positive student experiences that:

1.  Show students they belong as valued members of their class and school;

2.  Reinforce student feelings that they are useful to their classmates and valued by adults;

3.  Teach the students techniques to reinforce their efforts to improve on their own success; and

4.  Provide the students with authentic evidence of academic competence.

These experiences are intended to lessen the feelings of failure, alienation, uselessness, and powerlessness created by adversity. Teachers will support students in making appropriately assertive efforts to identify reasons for the lack of success and address negative emotions undermining those efforts.

The District will create supportive parental relationships fostering positive teacher/parent communications on a frequent basis through proactive discussions of student progress, assignments, class plans, curriculum focus and student challenges.

The District may consider creating multiyear relationships between individual teachers and groups of students to better follow student growth and progress over an extended period of time.

The implementation of a trauma-informed approach is viewed by the Board as an ongoing organizational change process. Such approach is not a program model that can be implemented and simply monitored. Rather, it is a profound paradigm shift in knowledge, perspective, attitudes, and skills that continue to deepen over time. A continuum of implementation involves movement through stages, beginning with becoming trauma aware and then progressing to trauma-sensitive in response to fully trauma informed.

A multi-faceted approach shall focus on attendance policies that focus on causes, disciplinary policies that incorporate restorative practices, curriculum development policies that focus on social and emotional learning and student wellness policies that promote healthy behaviors.

The Superintendent of Schools or his/her designee is directed to implement a trauma informed approach to education through the application of culturally responsive trauma informed practices in the District’s schools and programs.

(4131 – Staff Development)

(5114 – Suspension and Expulsion/Due Process)

(5131 – Conduct)

(5131.21 – Violent and Aggressive Behavior)

(5131.911 – Bullying/Safe School Climate)

(5131.912 – Aggressive Behavior)

(5131.913 – Cyberbullying)

(5141.4 – Child Abuse and Neglect)

(5141.5 – Suicide Prevention/Intervention)

(5144 – Discipline/Punishment)

(5144.12 – Restorative Justice Approach to School Discipline)

(5144.5 – Progressive Discipline and Promoting Positive School Behavior)

(5145.4 – Nondiscrimination)

(5145.5 – Sexual Harassment)

(5145.51 – Peer Sexual Harassment)

(5145.511 – Sexual Abuse Prevention and Education Program)

(5145.52 – Harassment)

(5145.53 – Human Dignity)

(5145.54 – Civility)

(6114.7 – School Safety)

(6142.101 – Student Wellness)

(6142.102 – Social and Emotional Learning)

(6142.11 – Human Relations Education)

(6164.2 – Guidance/Counseling Services)

(6164.3 – Psychological Services)

(6164.6 – Social Work Services)

Legal Reference:  Connecticut General Statutes

10-15b Access of parent or guardian to student’s records. Inspection and subpoena of school or student records.

10-221 Boards of education to prescribe rule(s), policies, and procedures

10-222d Policy on bullying behavior as amended by PA 08-160, P.A. 11-232, P.A. 14-172, PA 18-15 and PA 19-166

Public Act 19-166, An Act Concerning School Climates

Policy adopted: